Huteimi

Huteimi or Hutaym is a name given to several unrelated Red Sea coast-dwelling peoples, originally so by James Raymond Wellsted during his travels in the Arabian Peninsula. They are reported to be descendants of the Ichthyophagi, or "Fish-Eater" peoples as recounted by Diodorus Siculus, a Greek historian.

The origin of the name Huteimi is unclear, and several variants and alternate spellings exist, such as Huteim, Hutaym, Hutaim, Huteym, or Hootein. The Naval Intelligence Division's "Handbook of Arabia" mentions the name "Huteim" as "used roughly by the Arabs as a synonym for any base-born, half-settled tribe", and the name is often used alongside the Harb, a similar confederation of tribes in the Hejaz area.

It is unclear whether "Hutaym" refers to the same peoples as "Huteimi", because although they inhabit geographically similar areas, their lifestyles are profoundly different, as the Hutaym life is described by R. Khanam in his Encyclopaedic Ethnography of Middle-East and Central Asia as "raising exceptional breeds of camels, with exceptions being primarily ass nomads". It is possible that they do refer to similar peoples, but in different time periods.

Descriptions of the Huteimi peoples remain scarce, and the name refers to a wide-ranging group of peoples which are generally said to occupy Nubia, Egypt and Arabia around the Red Sea, but information is often incomplete or contradictory.

They are described by Wellsted to be "found on the Arabian and Nubian coasts," and that they are "cowardly in disposition, squalid and misshapen in form, and filthy in their habits". According to various accounts, they are further described as a race of fishermen, found in various parts of the Hejaz, with "large encampments near Leyt to the southward of Jiddah".

The Huteimi were a nomadic people, resembling "the Bedouins of the Desert," according to Wellsted. He mentions the prophet Mohammed, who, after seeking shelter near the shore, was "shocked and offended" by the presence of a dog being served at a Huteimi banquet. They primarily sustained themselves by fishing, although occasionally the peoples used their skill in sailing and knowledge of the cost to gather pearls and sell them at markets.

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